 I N D I A India is one of the oldest civilisation in the world with a kaleido scopic variety and rich cultural heritage. It has achieved multifaceted socio-economic progress during the last 59 years of its Independence. India has become self-sufficient in agricultural production, and is now the tenth industrialised country in the world and the sixth nation to have gone into outer space to conquer nature for the benefit of the people. It covers an area of 32,87,263 sq km, extending from the snow covered Himalayan heights to the tropical rain forests of the south. As the seventh largest country in the world, India stands apart from the rest of Asia, marked off as it is by mountains and the sea, which give the country a distinct geographical entity. It is the world's second most populous country, the most populous liberal democracy, and the seventh-largest country by geographical area. The constitution of India has recognised 22 different languages that are prevalent in the country, out of which, Hindi is the official language and is spoken in most of the urban cities of India. Other than these 22 languages, there are hundreds of dialects that add to the multilingual nature of the country. It is now the fourth largest economy (PPP) in the world and the second fastest growing economy, having made rapid economic progress in the last ten years, especially in the field of information technology. It has the second largest agricultural output of any country in the world. The country has always been portrayed as a land of spiritual integrity. Religious tolerance and cultural amalgamation have given shape to a uniquely secular Nation, which has created an impressive status of itself in the global arena. India is a land of festivals and fairs. Virtually celebrating each day of the year, there are more festivals celebrated in India than anywhere else in the world. India is referred to as the largest democracy in the world, by virtue of the fact that it has the largest electing population among democratic countries. The beauty of the Indian people lies in their spirit of tolerance, give-and-take and a composition of cultures that can be compared to a garden of flowers of various colours and shades of which, while maintaining their own entity, lend harmony and beauty to the garden i.e. India ! The official Indian government website is as follows: http://india.gov.in |
